Sunday, April 18, 2010

The Yellow Dart

There's nothing like getting a sweet deal. I headed to the Gorham Bike and Ski shop this morning in hopes of finding a decent bike at a good price at their bike swap. I think I scored. Behold, The Yellow Dart!

I really wanted a hardtail with decent front suspension and disc brakes, and as they were bringing the bikes out, I found a used Specialized P.2 that caught my eye. I was glad I got there early. They were bringing the bikes out to the tent and after scoping this one out, I kept my hand on it to claim it away from the gathering masses of other bargain seekers until they officially opened.

Forgive my ignorance here, as I know very little about mountain biking, but this bike at least looked very rugged and in good shape and I knew Specialized bikes were a good brand. I also really liked the price. I did a quick search on my Android phone and saw what it went for new. Whoa. I was getting it for about a third to a quarter of what it would cost new, so that was awesome.

Took it out for a quick spin, and was super impressed. Front suspension on it is awesome. Lots of travel and really made the ride very comfortable. It maneuvered extremely well, and I felt very, very comfortable on it. Fits me perfectly. The disc brakes also stop on a dime, even when wet and muddy. I've never ridden a bike with disc brakes before, so that was a huge treat. Big difference. Rugged protection on the front cog also. Seems like I could chunk this bike off a high cliff and it'd still be fine.

What I really like about it also is that there is no front derailleur. Just a rear one. The eight speeds are probably more than plenty. I always thought 21 or 24 speeds were overkill and have always overthought which gear to be in as a result. If the eight are spaced out enough like this one, it's probably just fine and you save weight. It's also one less thing to go wrong. On the initial ride I really liked the gear ratios and they shifted right on.

I took it out for just a quick 4.6 mile spin. Will give it a bit of a bigger test tomorrow, but will still be careful because the pedals are platforms (not used to those) and I also need to continue to mind the foot. Speaking of which, it continues to improve slowly but nicely. I'm off the pneumatic boot and there's only a slight, dull soreness at this point. Good news!